The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1887-08-25
THE COST OF WAR.
Scenes in Our Civil War and
Other Wars Compared.
The Losses at Shiloh Much
Greater Than at Waterloo.

A Washington correspondent of the
Cincinnati Commercial Gazette has been
comparing the statistics of the loss by
death of Union soldiers during the Re-
bellion, with the mortality Of other wars.
Reports show that the northern and
southern armies met in more than 1000
skirmishes and battles. In 14S of these
conflicts the loss on the Federal side was
more than 500 men, and in at least ten
battles more than 10, 900 men were re-
ported lost on each side. The appended
table shows that the combined losses of
the Federal and Confederate forces, In
killed, wounded and missing, in the fol-
lowing engagements, were: Shiloh, a.
900; Antietam, $4,000; Stone river,
81, 1000; Charlottesville, 5000; Gettys-
burg, $4,000; Chickam tuga, $4,000;
McClellan's peninsular campaign, $780,
600, and Sherman's campaign, 1875, 900.
Waterloo was one of the most desperate
and bloody fields chronicled in European
history, and yet Wellington's casualties
were less than 12 per cent, his losses be-
ing 2, ,432 killed, aud 05S wounded out
of over 100, 900 men, while at Shiloh one
side lost in killed and wounded 9,740 out
of 1000, while their opponeats report
their killed and wounded at 0,616,
making the casualties about 80 per
cent. At the great battle Of Wagram
Napoleon lost but about per cent. At
Wurzburg the French lost but 1-2 per
cent, and yet the army gave up the field
and retreatcd to the Rhine. At Racour,
Marshal SAKE lost but 2 1-2 per cent.
At Zurich, Massena lost but s per cent.
At Lagriz, Frederick lost but 1-2 per
cent. At Malplaquet, Marlboro lost but
10 per cent, and at Families the same
intrepid commander lost but per cent.
At Contras, Henry of Navarro was re-
ported as cut to pieces, yet his loss was
less than 10 per cent. At Lodi, Napoleon
lost 1 IA per cent. At Valmy, Freder-
ick William lost but per cent, and at
the great battles of Marergo and Aus
terlitz, sanguniary as they were, Napo-
leon lost an average of less than IA 10
per cent. At Magenta and Solferino, in
1859, the average loss of both armies was
less than 8 per cent. At Konigrath, in
1866, it was 6 per cent. At Woerth,
Specheran, Mars le Tour, Gravelotte and
Sedan, in 1870, the average loss was IL
per cent, while at Linden General
Moreau lost but per cent. in killed and
wounded. Americans would scarcely
call this lively skirmish. At Perry
vile, Murfreesboro, Chickamauga, At
lanta, Gettysburg, Mission Ridge, the
Wilderness and Spottsylvania, the loss
frequently reached, and sometimes ex-
ceeded, 40 per cent. Official statistics
show that of the 5000, 900
men enlisted, there were killed in
battle, "A, ,23s; died of wounds. 40, 2Q5!
died of disease, 1856, ,2I6; died of un-
known causes, 81, 1874; total, 303, s4S.
This includes only those whose death
while in the army had been actually
proved. To this number should be add
ed, first, 10000 men who are known to
have died while in the hands of the ene-
my "a prisoners of war, and many others
in the same manner whose deaths are un-
recorded; second, fair percentage Of
the 205, 704 men who are put down on
the official reports as deserters and miss
ing in action, for those who participated
! in the war know that men frequently
! disappear, who, it was certain had moi
deserted, yet could not be otherwise
officially accounted for; third, thousands
who are buried in private cemeteries
all over the north who died while home
on furlough. The nations dead are
buried in 73 national cemeteries, oi
which only 12 are in the Northern
States. The proportion of death from
all causes in the troops of each state wa.
as follows Maine, in Z; New Hamp
shire, in Z; Vermont, 1 in 6; Massa
chusetts, in o; Rhode Island, in II
Connecticut, 1 in 10 New York, in 10
| New Jersey, in 12; Pennsylvania 1 il
12; Delaware, in 90; Maryland, ] il
90; Ohio, in 8; Indiana, in s; Hi
nois, in Z; Michigan, 1 in 6;Wisconsin
in Z; Minnesota, in 8; Iowa, 1 in
(nearly g.; Kansas, in s.; California,
in 20; West Virginia, 1 in 0; Kentucky,
1 in 10; Missouri, in 9.